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For those who don’t know the tool: Nuke is Foundry‘s node-based compositing application for combining live action, CG and effects, with an integrated 3D environment. NukeX adds advanced tracking, cleanup and machine-learning tools; Nuke Studio combines that compositing toolset with editorial, conform and review capabilities.
Foundry has opened Nuke 18.0 for beta testing, bringing native Griptape execution into the Node Graph, more manageable Gaussian splats, automatic cut detection and several overdue courtesies for the person operating the software. Inputs can introduce themselves. Errors can provide an address. A reference movie can reveal where the shots are. For an industry capable of reconstructing entire cities, we have spent an impressive amount of time looking for a socket.
Get a grip, keep the graph
The native Griptape node runs workflows through a connected Griptape Engine, exposing controls and returning results inside the comp. Authoring stays in Griptape; execution comes to Nuke. Foundry’s acquisition of Griptape has acquired a practical attachment. Less passing files around, more getting a grip on the graph.
Foundry claims workflows for depth, normals, AOVs and position passes, plus keying, masking, clean plates, inpainting, reframing and set extension. Supported deliverables include PNG, JPEG, MOV, MP4, USD geometry (.usdz) and splats (.spz). For another approach to putting generated passes to work in comp, our Beeble Nuke plug-in breakdown follows pass-based relighting. The bridge executes the chosen workflow; it does not make every model equally useful.
You need Nuke 18.0 or 17.2, a running Engine and the Nuke Griptape Nodes Library. Griptape Nodes Desktop bundles Engine and Editor; existing workflows only need the Engine. Foundry’s setup guide includes Nuke Indie and testing with a free Griptape account. No Enterprise account is required to test the bridge. Yet.
Discovered mode finds engines linked to your API key; Direct accepts an engine IP address. Different nodes can use different engines. Selecting a workflow builds knobs from Start Flow parameters, including prompts, models, seeds and resolution settings where exposed, plus image input pipes. End Flow defines outputs. The knobs come to the compositor, which seems only fair given how often the compositor has had to go looking for them.
Run Workflow executes asynchronously, with progress in Properties and orange, yellow, green or red badges for stale/default, running, complete or failed states. Cancel before changing parameters during a run. The Output menu selects among deliverables; the Log tab records connection and execution activity. Green means finished. Approval remains a separate, considerably less deterministic process.
Splat’s enough of that
The Gaussian splat additions let artists reduce viewport complexity without asking their workstation to admire every last ellipsoid. Four controls work separately or together: cull a chosen percentage of splats, display simple points with adjustable size, draw only splats inside a selected camera frustum, or disable spherical harmonics and their view-dependent processing. Our SuperSplat 3 breakdown explores the same heavy-scene problem through its WebGPU renderer and interaction modes. Different machinery, familiar ambition: move the camera before retirement.
Nuke’s controls live in the 3D viewport toolbar and Viewer Settings’ 3D View tab. They affect the viewport only; final SplatRender output stays unchanged. The budget cut is strictly for the preview. Vertex selection also works directly on splats, with existing snapping controls able to place a FieldShape at the selected location.
FieldThreshold builds a density field or signed distance field by thresholding incoming splat attributes. Feed that field into GeoDeletePoints for cleanup or GeoGrade for selective grading. Supported attributes are Position, Scale, Opacity, Color, HSV, Nearest Neighbour Distance and Distance from Origin. Unwanted splats can now be given explicit selection criteria before redundancy. At least somebody in post gets a clear brief.
Nearest Neighbour Distance is an attribute to investigate when isolating stray points; Opacity or HSV can target other regions. These controls construct masks rather than supply a universal cleanup recipe. Foundry flags slower FieldThreshold performance for unevenly distributed splats spread over a large area.
A cut above manual clicking
Auto-Detect Cuts uses a model-based engine to identify boundaries in a reference QuickTime. Right-click the timeline clip and choose Editorial > Auto-Detect Cuts; progress reports completion percentage and cuts found, with cancellation available. Nuke adds the boundaries to the clip, and the Join tool removes unnecessary cuts. Frank Rueter described the pain of receiving a feature-length QuickTime without an EDL in our Nukepedia and CutDetector interview. Foundry is now taking a stab at the same chore inside the timeline.
Cut detection is disabled by default for facilities that do not want model-based operations. Set NUKE_TIMELINE_ENABLE_CUT_DETECT=1 before launch; Foundry’s macOS/Linux shell example is export NUKE_TIMELINE_ENABLE_CUT_DETECT=1. Set it to 0 and restart to disable it again. The model needs permission to join the cutting room. The reference movie, regrettably, does not need permission to arrive without an EDL.
The beta adds Python support for detection on a track item. Ctrl-G joins the current cut; Shift-Ctrl-G joins all cuts under the playhead. With the Spreadsheet open, Shift-Alt-click jumps to a shot and sets its in and out points, even during playback, helping expose missing boundaries. A progress bar can find cuts. It has yet to develop editorial judgement, however confidently it reaches 100 per cent.
Annotations gain Ellipse and Line shapes alongside Rectangles and Arrows. Ellipses support stroke and fill styling; both new shapes offer transformation, rotation, scaling and full Python API access. Reviewers can finally draw a straight line to the problem. Whether the note itself goes round in circles remains outside the shape library’s remit.
Join the dots. Literally.
Expand Inputs creates labelled Dot nodes for every unconnected input of the selected node, particularly useful on shaders and other densely connected operators. Use Edit > Nodes > Expand Inputs, Ctrl+. on Windows/Linux or Cmd+. on macOS. Preferences > Behaviours > Nodes > Expand Inputs dot node spacing sets vertical padding. Switch and Merge nodes with many possible inputs ask how many to expose. A socket with a name: modest ambitions, surprisingly welcome consequences.
Remove Unused Input Dots clears those with no active incoming pipe, through Edit > Nodes, Alt+. (Option+. on macOS), or Python. The new node.inputLabel(index) method exposes an input’s display label to pipeline tools. For the other half of graph legibility, NukeRef brings reference images into the Node Graph. Between labelled connections and visible references, the script might eventually explain itself. We should probably sit down. Take a deeeeeeeeep breath. Then start cursing.
Error messages find their calling
Messages replaces Error Console with differentiated errors, warnings and information, timestamps, search, filtering and copying. Jump from a message to its node or Properties, see errors and warnings in the status bar, write messages to a file or retrieve them through Python. An error with an address is a considerable improvement over an error with an attitude.
Graph Scope Variables extend into VariableSwitch pattern knobs: sets, lists and dynamic expressions drive the active input across multishot contexts. Python still reads the resolved value through nuke.selectedNode()[‘<knob_name>’].value().
HEVC: read all about it
The R3D 9.2.1 SDK update adds the latest R3D cameras, Phantom Track and V-RAPTOR metadata, and Nikon N-RAW (.NEV). H.265/HEVC now reads and plays in the Node Graph and timeline, with source metadata. HDR10 metadata is added for H.265 streams and, where present, in MOV containers for all MOV codecs. Fewer reasons to transcode a reference before discovering it was the wrong reference. The documented HEVC addition is decoding; encoding and universal profile, bit-depth or chroma coverage are not established by the announcement.
Availability, licences and other plot twists
The beta download page currently lists Nuke 18.0v1 Beta 2 and Nuke 17.2v1 Beta 2 for Linux, macOS and Windows. Access requires sign-in and a current Nuke, NukeX or Nuke Studio licence; artists without one can use Foundry’s free 30-day trial. The Griptape bridge is documented for both beta branches. A final Nuke 18 release date is not stated.
For platform planning, Foundry’s current Nuke-family requirements list Windows 11, Rocky Linux 9 and macOS Sequoia 15.x or Tahoe 26.x. They also identify Nuke 17.1 as the final Intel-Mac build. This is the current family guidance, rather than a separate Nuke 18 Beta 2 qualification matrix.
Foundry’s current euro price listing shows annual subscriptions at €3,139 for Nuke, €4,759 for NukeX and €5,799 for Nuke Studio; Nuke Render is €416 per year. Quarterly rentals are €1,719, €2,619 and €3,199 respectively for Nuke, NukeX and Nuke Studio. All listed prices are subject to applicable taxes. These are current product prices, not a separately announced Nuke 18 beta charge.
Griptape’s plans distinguish a free testing/non-commercial tier, Professional at $40 per user per month or $400 per user per year, subject to applicable taxes, and custom-priced Enterprise deployment. Professional includes 1,000 model credits per month. Local open-source model execution and cloud models accessed through users’ own external API keys do not consume Griptape credits; that does not remove any separate provider charges. A free account’s ability to test the bridge should not be confused with free usage.
Foundry strongly recommends keeping beta features out of production. Test engine connections, models, formats, colour handling and representative splat assets in isolation before changing a pipeline. Local or cloud execution follows the workflow and deployment, not the location of its knobs. The beta offers more control over several awkward jobs; give it test shots before giving it a delivery. Beta safe than sorry. Yes, Iwent there.
| Product | Nuke 18.0 open beta |
| Developer | Foundry |
| Current listed build | Nuke 18.0v1 Beta 2; Nuke 17.2v1 Beta 2 is also available |
| Installer platforms | Linux, macOS and Windows |
| Beta access | Current Nuke, NukeX or Nuke Studio licence, or Foundry’s free 30-day trial |
| Griptape requirements | Running Griptape Engine and Nuke Griptape Nodes Library; Griptape Nodes Desktop recommended |
| Official page | Nuke 18.0 open beta |
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Article details
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- Bela Beier
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